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The Emotional and Personal Considerations Involved in Facing a DUI

Home Blog Drunk Driving The Emotional and Personal Considerations Involved in Facing a DUI

After haven written hundreds of articles about Drunk Driving, I believe I have covered every step of the process, and explained each in detail. In the various other Drunk Driving sections of this site, I examine and explain the legal considerations involved in facing a DUI, and in hiring a Michigan DUI attorney. In this section, we’ll look at DUI from a more personal point of view, directing our focus to the emotional and practical implications of a DUI, rather than the technical, legal stuff.

The Stop…

Remember your first wave of terror strike when the Police lights were in your rear-view mirror and you knew you were in trouble. It is amazing how the police can seemingly “smell” someone driving under the influence of alcohol from the car behind. Whatever else, they are good at their job and, in most cases they are right in their suspicions. With the officer at your door and your heart beating like a drum, you try your best to not come across as intoxicated. By this time the Police Officer has spent about 30 seconds at your window, and will have already looked at the condition of the your eyes, and sniffed out the scent of alcohol. At the point that you are over the legal limit, the clear smell of alcohol will likely have been detected by the officer from your breath.

The realization that things are only going to get worse begins to hit home when you are asked to step out of the vehicle. While your mind may be racing and trying to think of a way out of the situation, the reality is once you are asked to step out of the car, you won’t be getting back into it.

The Arrest…

Often the Arrest is rather traumatic and then the second wave of terror hits home when you become handcuffed and placed in the back of the Police car. People who have spent their entire life working hard and paying their own way feel degraded and embarrassed at this point. Beyond fear and embarrassment, feelings of anger often occur. Sometimes, a person will ask for a break, or ask if they can just leave the car and get a ride home. If you’re reading this, then the answer was surely “no,” and you got a ride to the Police Station.

While at the Station, a whole new set of feelings begin to emerge. Remember the sense of panic and fear and the sense of dread that overcame you? You just know, at this point, that you won’t be getting out anytime soon, and wonder just how long you’ll be there.

Sitting in Jail…

What comes next is a turning point for many people. Once you began thinking clearly enough to stop blaming anyone or anything else, you most likely began to feel a sense of humiliation. Just waiting, for what seems like forever to be released and then having to face the person who is coming to pick up you can be overwhelming.

Finally Out!

Now it’s time to go and it arrived none too soon! While you’re happy to be on your way, now you have to figure out where your car is! That brings an unfamiliar feeling that your lifeline has disappeared. Often, as many DUI’s happen on the weekend, you can’t even get your car out until Monday, if the arrest wasn’t enough…

In some cases your car is listed to be forfeited (don’t worry, you can get it back; this is just another way to get more money from you) and therefore you can’t can’t even get it back until you pay the fee (some say “ransom”), plus, in all cases, the towing and storage fees.

Finding the Right Michigan DUI Lawyer…

Of my many years of dealing with people who are seeking legal counsel, clients tend to hire an attorney based upon whether they can connect with him or her, which is why it is important that I understand and have compassion for someone who is facing the unknown. After being arrested, people want answers to their questions. “What’s going to happen to me?” “What’s going to be the outcome of my case?” “What about my car?” “What about my license?” All of these are normal questions and deserve answers. I am not the Attorney who is just selling a “bill of goods,” and making promises or who just wants to get the case over. It is important to know what you have been through, and I do, which is why I seek the best possible outcome. I understand how a DUI charge can affect your daily activities, from your job, to school, to caring for your family and the financial burden it places upon you. I am always conscious of the consequences to your driving record, the sting of driver’s responsibly fees, court costs and court obligations. This is why not every question can be answered at the onset of your case. It is my job to get the best outcome possible and not to make promises that sound too good just to get you to hire me.

Handling a DUI case is a process with many facets that must be carefully managed in order to be successful and obtain the best outcome. The time I spend with a client is important for me to help understand the kind of person you are and to use your positive attributes to reinforce our case. If an Attorney does not know personally his/her client on that deeper level, it is almost like representing someone they have barely meet and then trying to persuade the prosecutor and/or Judge about someone he or she hardly knows. Who you are as a person matters in your DUI case I get to know every client on a personal level which sets me apart from the kind of lawyer that just tries to hustle you in and out just looking to cash in at your expense.

Emotional…

When I speak about emotions, it is with the full awareness that a DUI is a difficult emotional event and requires a compassionate, emotional and understanding person to speak on your behalf as your representative. I handle all my cases with a heart full of passion and drive and I work hard for your best interests.